36 Björn Borg

BJÖRN BORG: first half retail turnover rose sharply

CONSOLIDATED first half sales of underwear concern Björn Borg rose by only 1.4 per cent, to EUR 239.8m, as a result of setbacks in the Scandinavian countries and the Netherlands. While wholesale sales slumped by 16 per cent to EUR 100.8m, retail sales rose by 14.6m to EUR 37.8m. Despite the modest rise in sales, earnings for the period nearly doubled to reach EUR 19.6m. At 30 June, the label counted 38 stores, of which 21 were franchises. Restructuring by the distributor in the Netherlands led to the closure of 19 stores there since June 2013.

As we wrote when reporting on the closures in Holland, the number of stores there under the company’s label was in excess of potential sales and market share.